Background

Technically a 2nd Year SIAT student, I spent a year at Douglas College for their Winter and Summer 2010 semesters before transferring over.

I went to Maple Ridge Secondary School. There I met all of my current bros and broettes. I took a good couple of computer classes there (literally one focused on digital art, animation and Photoshop, and the other on programming and making games). Those two classes (mostly the former) had a profound effect on what I wanted to do later in my life - as well as leave my spare time a dry, tattered, empty husk. Woo!

In particular I love making things, creating stuff, tinkering with ideas and concepts. Since I was a kid I played with stuff like clay, plasticine, and lego all the time. I see my enjoyment and fascination of using programs like Maya, Cheetah and Vue as a direct evolution of those past fiddlings.

Joined the club this Fall (2010).

Interests

Video/Computer games (shock and awe)

Drawing (more digital than pencil and paper)

Anime

Mythology

Sciencey stuff in general

Writing

Webcomics; I plan to start one up when I have the time to polish my drawing skills.

Tabletop Boardgames; Call of Cthulhu, DnD, Dark Heresy. Also play a Tau army in Warhammer 40k.

Active Game Projects

Nothing in the department of computer/video games. However, a friend of mine and I are currently working on a sort of campaigny, game setup thing for DnD 3.5 edition. It has nothing to do with mechanics, it'll just be a sort of alternate campaign design/character making document. We hope on finishing it in the next few weeks or months, when our current campaign is finished.

Finished Games/Half-Made Games

March of the Mongols 2: There Was Never a March of the Mongols 1: This was a game I made for an assignment in Grade 11. At it's core it was a horizontal Space Invaders with a quirky Megaman-like style, thinly disguised as a sidescroller. You play as Genghis Khan, as he battles his way across China, Persia and Russia to finally confront Mr. T. Featured an increasing amount of difficulty for each level (most other people's projects didn't even have other levels), a soundtrack, and two whole cutscenes. Like, the last level and the Mr. T fight were Nintendo Hard. It got distributed to maybe a half-dozen of computers in the main computer lab and it sorta almost became a popular game for a few weeks - with only myself and two other people known to have beat it.

It was made in Director 7(?).

March of the Mongols 3: This Time It's Personal: I started making this game about October of Grade 12, planning on making a full on, action sidescroller game with the same stupid humor - thinly disguised as a 2.5d game. My goal was to finish it by Late May/Early June of that year, but I never did. I did however, have the title menu, options menu and first level completely made, as well as the entire story, soundtrack and all cutscenes planned. I kept the Megaman style, except the art had a huge step-up, with less of an 8-bit look to it. I worked a LOT on it, making a smidgeon more than 360 different sprites, backgrounds, projectile and particle effects by the time I was done.

It was made in Director 7(?)

Signature Games

Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos: This is quite possibly my favorite game of all time. It got the Warcraft series which I'd played as a kid, and had it bloom into a genuine, characterful fantasy world. I loved the RPG-like Hero system, the units, maps, storyline and characters. And I probably spent more time in the Map Editor than the actual game; making no less than 4 full-on races in the process.

Golden Sun Series: I love both games equally - honest! It was the first RPG I'd played/bought, and a mighty fine choice. The first game was a 2001 title for the GBA, and sported vivid graphics and aesthetics. The fights were in an awesome 2.5d shot, the characters, summons and Dijnn-based class system were awesome, and the musical score is sublime. The sequel, Lost Age, just built on this and finished off the storyline - with some pretty fantastic stuff along the way, both character and plot wise.

Red Faction: Guerilla: I don't own this game, or the console I play it on. Either way, average xbox360 3rd person "shooter", with a dull color palette and all that jazz. However, the glimmering gem on it's brown and grey crown is it's GeoMod 2.0 engine. This allows buildings and vehicles to be destroyed in utterly unique and dynamic ways. It isn't perfect, and I've had many a factory being held up by one peg of a foundation - but even that has its merits. I go nuts when I play this game, literally. If you think you can say that ramping an APC - covered in bombs (that you planted) - into an enemy tower, detonating said bombs, then jumping out of the car as the tower crumbles into the surrounding base - and landing on some poor sucker - isn't fun, you have some serious issues buddy. Serious. Issues.

Steel Battalion: Line of Contact: A mecha simulation game like no other. With a fourty button, two joystick, 3 pedal control set, and a ridiculous depth and satisfaction of gameplay, it was pretty boss. Oh ya, it's one of my favorite games ever, and I only played it for like three hours tops.

Minecraft: This is drugs for me. It is the parts to make drugs - so I can make drugs for me (which is worse). I love using my creativity to make, build or destroy stuff, and I especially love exploration and atmosphere. It isn't perfect, and I think it could use a larger variety of mobs and maybe tools, but I still find it an amazing game.

Virtual On: Cyber Troopers: A 3rd person mecha arcade fightery type game from 1995. This was the zenith, the nirvana, the golden fleece, the top of anything mecha for me from when I was about 11 until Steel Battalion rolled along. It consisted of two cockpit style seats with two joysticks for each player. With fast-paced gameplay, countable polygons on the models and probably the best quarter-to-fun-time ratio of any game you could find in an arcade, I'll be telling my kids about this game with the same gusto as my participation in the Moon Wars twenty years down the line or whatever.